Woman's 3 sons arrested on drug charges upstairs from her home-based day care

Homeowner, day care operator Saundra Cole not accused of wrongdoing

Upstairs and downstairs in a Hazelwood neighborhood home, Pittsburgh police and state authorities are investigating an unusual combination.

While Pennsylvania's Welfare Department confirms a registered home-based child care provider operates on the first floor of a Tipton Street home, police say they've arrested three men who live on the third floor on charges related to heroin, crack cocaine, marijuana and a gun found in their living area.

City police with a search warrant say in criminal complaints that they found a dozen stamp bags of heroin, 16 baggies of crack cocaine, three baggies of marijuana and a Glock .45 pistol in third-floor bedrooms of house.

Homeowner Saundra Cole operates the home-based "Saundra Cole Family Child Care Center" on the first floor, and a Welfare Department spokeswoman says it's important to note that she is not accused of any wrongdoing in the case.

Police arrested her three sons -- Christian Yates, Tyrique Cole and Marlin Jackson, who live on the third floor -- on drugs charges and for allegedly removing I.D. markings on the gun.

Pittsburgh City Councilman Corey O'Connor, whose district includes Hazelwood, told Channel 4 Action News, "I'd be shocked if the state would allow this to continue in a day care facility."

Pittsburgh Assistant Police Chief George Trosky told Channel 4 Action News reporter Bob Mayo, "The Welfare Department stated that there is a day care registered at that address and states that there are eight 'subsidized' children registered there. There is a procedure they have to follow to revoke the license, they are looking into it."

Channel 4 Action News confirmed that Pennsylvania's Welfare Department, which regulates this day care, is investigating, given that the drug arrests took place under the same roof.

Welfare Department spokeswoman Donna Morgan said, "We want to determine the safety of the children during the time period that there may have been alleged drug activity." She also said, "Our investigators are looking to see what kind of accessibility the third floor had to the child care center, which was on a different floor."

O'Connor said, "We want our kids to be as safe as possible, and if you're going to a day care, you want to trust that the individuals that are running that day care and your kids aren't exposed to drugs or guns."

When Channel 4 Action News reporter Bob Mayo knocked at the home Wednesday afternoon, no one answered, but Saundra Cole later told him by phone that "this is putting the cart before the horse"..."there are things in files that aren't the truth," and "you're chasing a story that's not true."

Morgan said, "We would have to go and make sure that if anybody is charged, facing charges, or has been convicted, (they) would not continue to be residing at that location." She also noted, "Anybody that would be living in the home over the age of 18 would have to have background clearances done. That is the type of thing that we would be looking into, as far as the continuation of providing services there."

O'Connor said, "Whoever's doing these inspections should go up and down every floor, every back alley, every side door. Make sure it is a secure location for our kids."

Morgan said, "We're working with the police to obtain more information, but we've got to make a decision down the road about the situation for the day care, and that's what we're doing right now." Regarding the day care operator, Morgan said the Welfare Department is reviewing "did she meet all the regulatory requirements? Did she continue to protect the children and keep them in a safe environment? Those are the things we're investigating at this point."

The criminal complaint indicates all three men arrested say they live on the third floor of 216 Tipton St. and are all sons of Cole, who said she and her boyfriend live strictly on the first and second floors.

The arrests happened last Thursday. Pittsburgh police were assisting an adult probation officer in attempting to serve an arrest warrant. While searching for the warrant suspect, they noticed "in plain view" marijuana in a small bag on a dresser, multiple digital scales with marijuana residue, several boxes of plastic bags, and "brick magazine wrapping paper" of the type used to package bricks of heroin for sale.Police cleared the residence while they got a a search warrant. They then recovered evidence from third-floor bedrooms, including heroin, crack cocaine, marijuana, the Glock pistol and $2,970 in cash.

The criminal complaint says it was in the downstairs living room where police encountered the homeowners, Cole and her boyfriend, Howard McKamey, along with the three men, Cole's sons. It was the three sons who were ultimately arrested and charged.

The criminal complaint says Cole told police she and her boyfriend strictly occupy only the first two floors of the house, and do not go up on the third floor; she told them it's occupied by her three sons.

Police say after the three sons were arrested and read their rights, they emphatically told police that Cole and McKamey never go on the third floor -- that they, the three sons, "live and hang out" on the third floor. Yates was also charged as a former convict who is not to own a firearm. Police note that Tyrique Cole told them the gun was his. All three brothers are charged with drug possession, conspiracy and obliterating identifying markings on the gun.

City police and the Welfare Department say their investigations aren't over. Next week, the three men arrested have their first day in court when they face preliminary hearings at 12:30 p.m. Aug. 1 at the Municipal Courts Building in downtown Pittsburgh.

Copyright 2013 byWTAE.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.